Guess what? Military funds mind-reading science

August 16, 2008 By ALICIA CHANG , AP Science Writer

(AP) -- Here's a mind-bending idea: The U.S. military is paying scientists to study ways to read people's thoughts. The hope is that the research could someday lead to a gadget capable of translating the thoughts of soldiers who suffered brain injuries in combat or even stroke patients in hospitals.



Content from The Associated Press expires 15 days after original publication date. For more information about The Associated Press, please visit www.ap.org .

4.1 /5 (14 votes)  

Filter


Move the slider to adjust rank threshold, so that you can hide some of the comments.


Display comments: newest first

conservo
Aug 16, 2008

Rank: not rated yet
I would think the intricate brainwave patterns would be host specific. You might find a common signal for something like colors or sounds, but nailing it down to data that universally match specific names and events would be impossible.

Before you could read a stroke patient's thoughts via their brainwaves, you'll need a library of their specific brain activity that's already been mapped out.
conservo
Aug 16, 2008

Rank: 3 / 5 (2)
"This will never be used in a way without somebody's real, active cooperation," he said.

Yea, like those soldiers with brain injuries and all those stroke patients - you know, the very ones this technology is developed for - are capable of giving their real, active cooperation.
voiceofuruguay
Aug 16, 2008

Rank: 5 / 5 (1)
we're fucked. there's something very wrong in the whole tax-payer money being used by the military for this.
EarthScientist
Aug 16, 2008

Rank: 1 / 5 (1)
This is funny,peoples thoughts are being read every day and only the big boys know how,there are hyperdimensional men and some women everywhere,and just how do you think the military/CIA remote viewing works,its with protocol from hyperdimension. Tell The Army to give the money back,I will do it for much ,much less.
Rank 4.1 /5 (14 votes)
Tags

Relevant PhysicsForums posts

More news stories

Employers feel no love for unscrupulous practice of 'service sweethearting'

A new study led by two Florida State University marketing professors finds that some frontline service employees who are rewarded for hikes in customer loyalty and satisfaction also may engage in "service ...

Other Sciences / Economics & Business

created 6 hours ago | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 4

A frank discussion of the power law and linking correlation to causation

(PhysOrg.com) -- Michael Stumpf a mathematics professor at Imperial College in London, and Mason Porter a lecturer at Oxford have teamed together to write and publish a perspective piece in Science regarding the in ...

Other Sciences / Mathematics

created 12 hours ago | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 2 | with audio podcast report

The question of life in the ancient world

There’s a general feeling that we don’t get the Greeks – ancient or modern. Many, including heads of state like Angela Merkel, visibly shake their head in exasperation, rightly or wrongly, at ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created 12 hours ago | popularity 1 / 5 (2) | comments 4

Sonic Cradle lands spot in TED exhibition

A Simon Fraser University graduate student project that melds music, meditation and modern technology has landed a rare spot as an exhibit at TEDActive 2012 in Palm Springs, California this month.

Other Sciences / Other

created 8 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Chilean miners' rescue capsule on show in London

The capsule used to rescue Chilean miners trapped underground for two months goes on display Saturday at the Science Museum in London -- the first time it has been seen in Europe.

Other Sciences / Other

created 11 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0


Google users warned of threat to smartphone wallets

Users of Google smartphone wallets were being warned on Friday that there is a way to crack pass codes intended to thwart thieves from going on illicit shopping sprees.

Anonymous knocks CIA website offline (Update)

The website of the Central Intelligence Agency was inaccessible on Friday after the hacker group Anonymous claimed to have knocked it offline.

Complex wiring of the nervous system may rely on a just a handful of genes and proteins

Researchers at the Salk Institute have discovered a startling feature of early brain development that helps to explain how complex neuron wiring patterns are programmed using just a handful of critical genes. ...

New error-correcting codes guarantee the fastest possible rate of data transmission

Error-correcting codes are one of the triumphs of the digital age. They’re a way of encoding information so that it can be transmitted across a communication channel — such as an optical fiber o ...

Putting the squeeze on planets outside our solar system

(PhysOrg.com) -- Using high-powered lasers, scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and collaborators discovered that molten magnesium silicate undergoes a phase change in the liquid state, abruptly ...

The power of estrogen -- male snakes attract other males

A new study has shown that boosting the estrogen levels of male garter snakes causes them to secrete the same pheromones that females use to attract suitors, and turned the males into just about the sexiest ...